badabing8888 wrote:Oh, as far as Hasselbeck goes, obviously I am biased but I think they were right on in him getting the 3rd QB slot over Breese. Breese has been GOD awful in a few games as well as having some brilliant ones.

Hasselbeck on the other hand has been very consistent and is on pace to break every single season passing record in team history.

All this with absolutely NO running game and for most of the season missing both starting WR's (Branch and Hackett). As much as I have seen in awhile on a team, an entire offense is on one player's back and Hass has responded.

Seems like we can't fully agree on this topic, bada.

On one side, I know what you're saying. Hasselbeck has had a good season and has carried the Seahawks offense during the whole year without much help from the running game.

Still, Brees is playing at an absurd level right now. Brady-like. There's no possible comparison between both players at this point. New Orleans, without a running game and anything resembling a defense, still can make the playoffs as a wild card. That's an amazing achievement that has two guys to blame, Brees and Colston, and both are out of the pro bowl.

Of course, all things considered, Hasselbeck has been more consistent than Brees during the whole year. Brees has been playing at MVP level the second half of the season, but looked pretty average (bad, at times) the first half, so it's not like Hasselbeck's pick is an outrageous snub.

To change the trend, there's something I agree with you, and that's Lofa starting above Willis. Even tho numbers favor P-Willie, I also think Lofa does more for his team's defense. Also, Seattle's LB corps are more talented, so it's natural his stats are lower. Willis has been more of a one-man show.

Don't get me wrong, both deserve to be there. I just think Lofa deserves to start this year, although that may soon change.

xbaywarrior wrote:Hasselbeck is your most consistent player. The problem your Seahawks have had since their Superbowl loss couple years back is staying consistent. Honestly, if everyone was completely healthy, I'd think they'd be able to compete against the Patriots.

I think the best chance for the NFC against the Pats is Green Bay. I'd give Seattle a chance if they were all healthy AND playing at home. I just don't trust them enough on the road.

As for Dallas, I don't like their secondary, specially their safeties. I think Moss and Brady might have a field day against them.

yeah Mario Williams has been a problem for a lot of Tackles this year. shame he didn't make it.

& props for recognizing that Asomugha was worthy of going... i'm battling some other sucker fools on some nfl boards who keep telling me last year was the year he deserved to go when he got the 8 INT's... But this year Offensive Co-ordinators have been strategizing him out of there game plans and i read some rediculous stat that Raiders opponents are only throwing like 2 balls a game to Nmadi's man and the Raiders opponents ain't even catching half of the 2 balls. His really maturing into a payday LOCKDOWN Corner... let's hope Al doesn't keep chucking the franchise tag onto him and alienate him like what happened with CWood!

pawnograffiti wrote:Also i thought Thomas Howard played well enough this year to earn Probowl status....

Yeah, he did. As much as I hate both him and Morrison, they both are great players that deserve to be there. It is a damn shame that players get shunned because of the team that they play on. They should be unbiased when it comes to that. It gets rediculous. I would actually like to see a rule in the Pro Bowl like the All-Star for baseball does: one from every team, then the most deserving. It makes it better for all the teams, to at least have an interest in the game.

pawnograffiti wrote:Also i thought Thomas Howard played well enough this year to earn Probowl status....

Yeah, he did. As much as I hate both him and Morrison, they both are great players that deserve to be there. It is a damn shame that players get shunned because of the team that they play on. They should be unbiased when it comes to that. It gets rediculous. I would actually like to see a rule in the Pro Bowl like the All-Star for baseball does: one from every team, then the most deserving. It makes it better for all the teams, to at least have an interest in the game.

I gotta say that the NFL didn't do the Raiders any favours when it comes to National Broadcasting of games.

I just hope the Raiders pick up some Nationally broadcasted games next season cause i've seen nothing in Australia this year of Raiders games (only highlights) .... i'm guessing the Patriots @ Oakland will be a Sunday Night, Monday Night worthy game!!!

You are in the same boat the Niners are: a crappy team that nobody would watch. I doubt that either team will get one next year.

The Raiders and Pats game wont be televised because the NFL has to pick and choose the games that the Pats will be on national TV, and the Raiders just arent a big enough team to get it. I'm not sure what the Pats schedule looks like for next year, but I cannot imagine them not having six better games than the one against the Raiders.

sfsfsfgiants wrote:You are in the same boat the Niners are: a crappy team that nobody would watch. I doubt that either team will get one next year.

The Raiders and Pats game wont be televised because the NFL has to pick and choose the games that the Pats will be on national TV, and the Raiders just arent a big enough team to get it. I'm not sure what the Pats schedule looks like for next year, but I cannot imagine them not having six better games than the one against the Raiders.

But it one of sports great rivalries!!!!

Dude you don't honestly think ESPN will wanna pick up Oakland's return to Oakland... the Dude is gonna get boo'ed, cussed and probably assaulted by the Black Hole!!! This is a ratings Grab winner if i ever seen one!

Plus there is gonna be a big opening in the TV Scheduale when the Falcons games get taken off national tv. there's no reason to show the Falcons with there poor record and lacking of Quality Quarterback.

I think Oakland will pick up at least 2 games next year on national tv.... they'll be a monday night football (Hopefully the Pats!!!) and there's gonna also be a division rival game say Chargers or Broncos. Just my predictions.

pawnograffiti wrote:Also i thought Thomas Howard played well enough this year to earn Probowl status....

Yeah, he did. As much as I hate both him and Morrison, they both are great players that deserve to be there. It is a damn shame that players get shunned because of the team that they play on. They should be unbiased when it comes to that. It gets rediculous. I would actually like to see a rule in the Pro Bowl like the All-Star for baseball does: one from every team, then the most deserving. It makes it better for all the teams, to at least have an interest in the game.

They would have been there if they were playing for any other team. Some of these pro bowl picks make no sense. Some players make it year after year just for their name. Ruben Brown was selected for 8 straight years, and half of those were due to his name. Ogden is in this year due to his name... and so on. Those are only examples.

Then again, you have good teams like the Bucs or the Jags without a single pro bowler. Taylor is gonna make it, but due to injuries, not on the selected team.

btw, Bada, let's forget about that controversy of Brees over Hass for the Pro Bowl. After yesterday's stinker (although the rest of the team should be blamed as much as Brees, actually, even more), I must admit that I might have been biased... after all, I've seen Brees carry that god-awful team almost by himself (and with Colston) to near the playoffs. As they're our division rivals, I've watched them a lot closer than the Seahawks, so I might have been a bit biased towards Brees.

TMC, I am certainly biased as well. But TRYING to look at it objectively, I think Hass is more deserving.

They just really need to eliminate the fans and players voting. You always hear people saying "fans should not vote" but I dont think people realize that the players voting are as much or a bigger problem than the fans.

Players are so self absorbed (as they need to be) in their own team and playbook, they have NO idea what everyone is going around the league other than what they catch on ESPN every once in awhile. Every team has their PR guy put together a packet for the players that has their stats on it. They either vote strickly on stats or for their friends or who went to the same college as them. Or just on name.

You really think Joey Galloway knows who is playing the best left tackle in the AFC? Of course not.... he will just checkmark Jonathan Ogden because the media tells us that is the best LT in the AFC.

I think the best group to make the most intelligent votes are NFL assistant coaches. They are the ones that pour over film of every player. Each team's assistants could get together and share their knowledge and cast a ballot.

badabing8888 wrote:You really think Joey Galloway knows who is playing the best left tackle in the AFC? Of course not.... he will just checkmark Jonathan Ogden because the media tells us that is the best LT in the AFC.

That is a great point, man. I completely agree. Sometimes, I wish the media would be unbiased for one day, just to see what would happen. In the case of Ogden, he will get there because he is a majorly popular player, who was once the best in the league, and because this is his last year. I wish it wasnt so.

badabing8888 wrote:I think the best group to make the most intelligent votes are NFL assistant coaches. They are the ones that pour over film of every player. Each team's assistants could get together and share their knowledge and cast a ballot.

True, but that doesn't bode well with the popularity contest character the Pro Bowl or the NBA All Star Game have. It's done (in theory) for the fans, and the league(s) do not want to let them outside. Even if it means skewing the results.

You're right when you consider that group as the most fair way to select pro bowlers (actually, I'd go a step further. I'd let them pick only the players of their own conference). But it won't happen. It's a game meant to attract fans, so they can't leave them out of the voting (although, once you're a fan, it has the opposite effect. It's been years since the last time I watched a Pro Bowl game).

Another option, why not allow the players themselves to pick the pro bowlers for their own position and only for that position? Think that might work?

you make a very good point TMC about it being a fan's game. However, this is a very meaningful honor for the players and in a lot of cases, means a nice bonus as well. The most DESERVING should go. But I do realize that is "pie in the sky" thinking and will not happen.

Yeah, players certainly are more knowledgeable about their own position, however during the season, they just dont have the time to keep tabs on what is going on around the league.

I heard Ronde Barber talking about it a couple weeks ago and even voting for NFC cornerbacks he has no idea who is playing the best. You can only tell that by watching film of EVERYONE. He voted for Marcus Trufant simply because he was just coming off a 3 INT game and was leading the NFL in INT's at the time. He said the guys basically just vote for who has the most stats or the big name cause they honestly have no clue.

badabing8888 wrote:I heard Ronde Barber talking about it a couple weeks ago and even voting for NFC cornerbacks he has no idea who is playing the best. You can only tell that by watching film of EVERYONE. He voted for Marcus Trufant simply because he was just coming off a 3 INT game and was leading the NFL in INT's at the time. He said the guys basically just vote for who has the most stats or the big name cause they honestly have no clue.

I was just thinking that some players watch a lot of tape of guys that play their own positions (Greg White, the Bucs DE, is a prime example or a guy that devours tape) to learn more about how they play and, if possible, to develop new tricks.

I thought that they might be more qualified to choose players when they look at those guys to improve themselves... but you're right. Not every player does that (particularly the vets). It would be an improvement, not the answer.